Sennheiser claims victory in fake headphone case

Premium audio equipment company Sennheiser has secured a conviction against a man who sold €235,000-worth of fake headphones on Amazon.

31-year-old Anton Dyleuski from Cricklewood in London, UK - trading as Prime Electronics on Amazon via a company called Shakespeare Travel -  admitted selling counterfeit headphones to more than 7,000 online customers and was sentenced to one year's probation and 200 hours of community service.

Additional legal action is now pending and the trader may be held liable for damages, according to Sennheiser, which insists combating product piracy is as much about the loss of brand image as it is about averting financial loss.

"Counterfeit branded products lack the relevant sound qualities; they don’t meet our high quality standards, nor have they been through Sennheiser's strict final inspection and testing," says Dr. Andreas Sennheiser the company's chief executive.

In some cases use of low-quality, fake headphones can even result in hearing damage, according to the firm.

In 2012, Sennheiser started putting security labels on its products - supplied by Tesa Scribos - that feature overt and covert brand protection features and unique QR codes that allow consumers to check their purchases for authenticity.